Michigan
Stanford
Hanchaikul's Clutch Play Sends Michigan Past No. 9 Stanford, to ITA Nationals
1/28/2024 6:25:00 PM | Men's Tennis
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Event: ITA Kickoff (Day 2 of 2)
Score: #14 Michigan 4, #9 Stanford 3
Records: U-M (3-1), Stanford (2-1)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Feb. 2 -- at Harvard (Cambridge, Mass.), 5 p.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Patorn Hanchaikul was clutch for the University of Michigan, winning in a third set at No. 5 singles to lift the No. 14-ranked Wolverines to a 4-3 win over No. 9 Stanford in the championship match of the ITA Kickoff on Sunday (Jan. 28) at the Varsity Tennis Center.
With the win, the Wolverines advance to the ITA National Indoor Championships for the second straight season and fourth time overall. The event will be held Feb. 16-19 in New York City.
Stanford claimed the doubles point and took an early singles point at No. 1 with No. 37 ranked Samir Banerjee defeating No. 9 Gavin Young 6-1, 6-3 putting Michigan in an early 2-0 hole.
Bjorn Swenson got the Wolverines on the scoreboard at No. 3 when he put up matching 6-4 sets to take down Nico Godsick.
Across the balcony Nino Ehrenschneider was heading into a second set tiebreaker with Kyle Kang. Ehrenschneider whipped off a 6-2 first set before the two traded serves in the second set to head into a tiebreak. Knotted at 5-5, Ehrenschneider nabbed the final two points to secure the set and even the team scoreboard at 2-2, while Jacob Bickersteth, Will Cooksey and Hanchaikul were all heading into third sets.
No. 61-ranked Bickersteth rebounded from a 6-1 first-set loss to put away Max Basing 6-3 in the second. He used his momentum to grab a 4-0 lead in the third and carried it to a 6-2 finish, pushing Michigan ahead 3-2.
At that point, Cooksey was down 4-3 to Hudson Rivera on Court 6 and Hanchaikul was up 2-1 on Court 5. Rivera won the next two games on Cooksey to take the third set 6-3 with the crowd at the VTC crossing the balcony with all eyes on No. 6 to decide the match.
Hanchaikul won two break points to lead 4-1 but No. 53 Neel Rajesh held serve to make it 4-2 with both teams cheering on their teammate from the next court over. Hanchaikul held serve to get within one, 5-2 and broke Rajesh in an incredible finish as he was swarmed by his teammates.
Michigan handed Stanford its first loss of the season, while Hanchaikul recorded his first-ever match clincher and extended his win streak to seven in singles play.
Up next, the Wolverines will take to the road to face off against Harvard on Friday (Feb. 2) at 5 p.m. in Cambridge, Mass.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 – No. 37 Samir Banerjee (Stanford) d. No. 9 Gavin Young (U-M), 6-1, 6-3
No. 2 – No. 61 Jacob Bickersteth (U-M) d. Max Basing (Stanford), 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 3 – Nino Ehrenschneider (U-M) d. Kyle Kang (Stanford), 6-2, 7-6 (5)
No. 4 – Bjorn Swenson (U-M) d. Nico Godsick (Stanford), 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 – Patorn Hanchaikul (U-M) d. No. 53 Neel Rajesh (Stanford), 6-2, 5-7, 6-2
No. 6 – Hudson Rivera (Stanford) d. Will Cooksey (U-M), 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 – No. 31 Gavin Young/Nino Ehrenschneider (U-M) d. Nico Godsick/Samir Banerjee (Stanford), 6-2
No. 2 – Aryan Chaudry/Harsh Hemang Parikh (Stanford) d. Patorn Hanchaikul/Will Cooksey (U-M), 7-6 (2)
No. 3– Nishesh Basavareddy/Kyle Kang (Stanford) d. Jacob Bickersteth/Nicholas Steiglehner (U-M), 6-3
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-1-2, Singles 1-4-3-2-6-5
Players Mentioned
